Dungeon Master

You know how it is with most of these video game monsters: They're dumb as dirt. You meet 'em and right away they want to pull your heart out of your chest and eat it in front of you. No retreat, no parley, no common sense. Evidently none of 'em have a missus at home and an 80- pound bundle of monster joy on the way.

Well Dunge

So it's a decidedly odd (yet pleasant) sensation when you open your first locked door in this game and discover that the critter on the other side turns turgidly around after taking a beating...and runs away. As a matter of fact, he runs you right into two waiting monsters.

You wouldn't expect it from DM II at first; it looks like part and parcel of the original game. You still recruit party members from a Hall of Champions -- only this time, the candidates are hibernating. The screen layout and the point-and-click icon interface are pretty much identical to that of the original Dungeon Master. The graphics have improved a notch, both in detail and spot animations (like wind-blown curtains).

Fight for Freedom

In combat, freed of the narrow confines of the corridors, the monster appeared to be practicing the old Dungeon Master Two-Step, a hit-and-run technique much beloved by DM and Eye of the Beholder players. Essentially, he turns your own tactics against you. Dungeon Master II: Skullkeep makes you think. Indeed, it requires that you think. It's almost like playing against another person.

Now, it's not entirely paradise. Much like Eye of the Beholder, the controls make this would-be-intuitive game feel like work. DM II is playable with the standard Genesis controller, but the old joypad wasn't really made for lugging a cursor around the screen -- a mouse would be ideal.

It's a Keeper

DM II also carries over a few annoying conventions from the original DM, such as the need to maintain light sources and supplies of food, as well as knocking off hit points when you run into the walls -- as though this little accident was a form of combat. You won't care, though. Although there are other standard RPGs around, there's nothing like Dungeon Master II.

Dungeon Master is a direct port from the PC world, where it was a fairly popular title. It's still a fine game, but RPG fans might want to think a little before getting it - it ain't what you'd call action-packed. Your characters not only must worry about the usual things such as staying healthy and recharging their magic points, but they must also keep track of mundane details such as eating, drinking, and sleeping.

Dungeon Master takes place entirely in one enormous maze, seen from first-person perspective. As you wind through the corridors looking for the fabled Firestaff, you must meticulously map every square inch of the place - take three steps, draw it on the map, take three more steps, draw it on the map, and so on.

If this kind of meticulous, anal-retentive adventuring is your bag, Dungeon Master has a lot to offer. The dungeon really is huge, and as you work deeper and deeper into the place, the puzzles get fiendishly difficult. You wind up using your brain more than your thumb - even defeating the endless monster armies takes more planning than reflexes.

But hey, that's no reason to dislike Dungeon Master. For the patient, Dungeon Master really packs it in.

The real sequel to the complex and challenging 3-D dungeon exploring RPG will be appearing on the Mega-CD for the first time on a home video game system (the PC version will debut internationally in Japan for the NEC PC-9801 series).

Dungeon Master 2: Skull Keep adds many new features to the classic RPG including much enhanced graphic details, more actions and much smarter monsters. There are also shops to buy items, and you can summon monsters to aid you.

If you want a ticket to the realm of nightmares, Dungeon Master 2 will give you plenty of adventure.

Lord Chaos is wreaking havoc on the world around you. Only the Firestaff can defeat this horrendous evil. Do you possess the discipline to focus your energy entirely on this ultimate goal? Is your eye keen enough to find hidden levers and treasures in the slime-covered walls of this dark, dank dungeon? Can you solve the puzzles necessary to unlock the unseen doors to hidden rooms?

This spectacular 8-Meg role playing cart is based on an old but popular computer title of the same name. You must enter into a labyrinth of mazes filled with monsters, mummies, and other untold horrors. Collect treasure and helpful items from open chests in the mazes. Be careful what you touch or open because there are traps everywhere. Great 3-Dimensional scrolling simulates the effect of walking through a real dungeon. Keep your party alive by giving them enough food and water and medicine to heal the injuries incurred in battle. This carl promises hundreds of hours of mystery and adventure for the most dedicated role playing fans.

Dungeon Master was a legend in its own time on personal computers, and now JVC has converted this fantasy role-playing game to the Super NES. Unlike a fine wine, Dungeon Master has not gotten better with age. In fact, it may have turned a little sour.

Mastering Chaos

In a magical experiment gone terribly wrong, the good Grey Lord's evil twin, Lord Chaos, was set loose on an unsuspecting world. Chaos is holed up in a deep, dank dungeon, and he's imprisoned the souls of all 24 heroes who've entered his domain to try and destroy him. As the Grey Lord's apprentice, Theron, you must descend into Chaos's labyrinth and use the fabled Firestaff to put him in his place.

Theron exists in Chaos's domain only in spirit, so you must guide four able-bodied heroes to complete the quest. You assemble a party of four characters from the 24 held captive by Lord Chaos. You can either resurrect them in their current conditions, or reincarnate them into new bodies and modify their skills. You choose from fighters, ninjas, priests, wizards, and multiprofession characters, which are armed with hand-to-hand weapons, ranged weapons, healing magic, hurting magic, and protection magic.

Real Time, Real Slow

DM features real-time action, which means the monsters make their moves even if you do nothing. The innovative combat system is fun but repetitive. You see the same creatures over and over. Additionally, the somewhat unresponsive controls decrease the fun. The on-screen action often lags a second or two behind your controller input.

Game play in Dungeon Master is split between fighting, maze-wandering, and solving light puzzles. The puzzles are good, but simplistic. Most involve object manipulation with point-and-click commands. As you explore deeper, you'll uncover countless items, weapons, and treasures, which are easily distributed and used among your party. Don't expect heavy plot development, because this game is only fit for intermediate dungeoneers.

Graphics and Sounds Down Under

Dungeon Master's first-person perspective is fairly unique for SNES RPGs, but it's still drab by 16-bit standards. While the monsters are animated, the greyish dungeon walls are repeated over and over. The sounds are spartan, and an incessant water- dripping effect grates on your nerves. The spot music's good, but too infrequent.

Dungeon Crawl Redux

If you're looking for a beefy, full- bodied role-playing game, cross Dungeon Master off your menu and slice into Final Fantasy II. DM's puzzle and real-time combat elements are well done, but the rest of the game leaves your mouth watering for something more substantial.

Master this! Dungeon Master is on the Duo thanks to the marvelous people at T.T.I. After missing the big Prove-your-a-man festival, Theron, feeling anything but manly, accepts a dangerous mission from the powerful wizard Greylord. He must recover seven ancient symbols of the brave. Encounter eerie monsters and dodge traps. Get set for some serious mind trips in the dungeon!

One of the most popular games in Japan is going to be brought over to the States by JVC. In Dungeon Master you must make your way through endless hallways, packed with some of the most hideous monsters ever conceived. The game is set in a first-person 'through your eyes' perspective and the mazes of dungeon corridors are huge! In concept, DM is similar to many of the other dungeon type games but by being an 8 meg S-NES super cart it has superb graphics and smooth enemy animation.